Embodiments of the inventive concept described herein relate to a semiconductor memory, and more particularly, relate to a nonvolatile memory and an operating method of the nonvolatile memory.
Semiconductor memory devices are fabricated using semiconductor materials, such as silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP), and the like. Semiconductor memory devices are generally classified into volatile memory devices and nonvolatile memory devices.
Volatile memory devices lose stored contents when powered off. Volatile memory devices include random access memory (RAM), static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), and the like. Nonvolatile memory devices retain stored contents, even when powered off. Nonvolatile memory devices include read only memory (ROM), programmable ROM (PROM), electrically programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable and programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, phase-change RAM (PRAM), magnetic RAM (MRAM), resistive RAM (RRAM), ferroelectric RAM (FRAM), and the like. MRAM, in particular, which generally performs at rapid speed, consumes less power and has favorable nonvolatile characteristics, may be next generation memory.